The Sanjaya dynasty, which established
the first kingdom of Mataram, was founded around 730 A.D. by Sri
Maharaja Sanjaya ( See Hindu and
Buddhist Period ).This marks the beginning of the
historical period of Central Javan, here the first Hindi-Javan
temple site of Dieng ("mountain of the gods") was
built, on the 2 000 meter (6 560 feet) high plateau, which is the
basin of the surrounding volcanic region.

And so it is on the Dieng
plateau that we can see the prototypes of all Hindu
temples of Java, the
simple models of later, larger richly decorated temples.
Originally there were about forty - eight remain. a group
of temples in the north of the plateau is named after the
hero of the epic the Mahabharata, Arjuna, though
this was probably a later addition. The epic describes
the eternal struggle between good and evil, and the
battle of the Pandawa brothers against the Korawa
brothers, all descendants of the Bharata. The Arjuno
group consists of the temples (candi) Semar,
Puntadewa, Srikandi, and Sembadra. The relatively small
buildings are constructed on marshy ground and all follow
the same pattern: "From a square base rises a
smaller cella that opens to the west; this cella has a
stepped roof which repeats the shape of the cella with
lingams and stupas". Over this rises a stepped
temple tower that repeats the shape of the cella. Above
the entrance to the cella is a constantly recurring
motif, the sculpted head of Kala, son of the Shiva. The
head of a demon, it is meant to ward off evil. Opposite
the temples themselves is a subsidiary temple, the
purpose of which is unclear. maybe it served the priests
as a living area or was a repository or objects used in
rituals. all temples were probably dedicated to the main
deities of the Trimurti (brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva),
though the only temple which in fact has the Trimurti
carved on the exterior walls of the cella is the Candi
Srikandi: in the south, brahma, the creator of the world;
in the north Vishnu, the protector of the world; and in
the east , hiva, the destroyer and rebuilder of the
world.

Candi
Arjuno - A.D. 680 - 730, Dieng
plateau, Central java.

Borobudur:

Around
1 300 years after the life of the historical Buddha, the largest
buddhist building in the world was built in central Java: The
"world mountain", Borobudur.

Three central elements of
Buddhism are expressed here in the architectural form of
the stupa, the Meru, and the mandala.

The
stupa developped historically from the stone-age burial
mounds that in earlier times were reserved for important
rulers. Later, stupas were generally built at a
crossroads and contained the ashes or relics of holy men,
which the people revered by walking round in a clockwise
direction. The Borobudur, which was erected on the side
of a natural hill and so has no interior rooms,
culminates in the largest stupa in the world.

the Meru is a representation of
the mythical world mountain, Mount Meru, on whose summit
the gods live. In order to be nearer to the gods, the
builders constructed a pyramid whose steps are the
natural hill, a terraced holy shrine. With every step
pilgrins climb they symbolically achieve one more step in
their spiritual development and so reach a higher state
of consciousness.

The mandala is the symbolic
representation of the world and the spiritual creatures
who go to make it up. A mandala serves as a pattern for
meditation and as an aid (yantra) in achieving
concentration and the state of meditation. The Borobudur
is a three-dimensionnal mandala in which architecture and
sculpture work in harmony; the Borobudur-mandala guides
pilgrims along the stepped path that climbs through the
three spiritual realms. The mandala symbolizes that
process through which the soul is liberated from its
early life in order to attain perfection at the highest
stupa: a meditative pilgrim's way to Nirvana, the state
of non-existence sought by the Buddhist.

Head of a
transcendental Buddha from Borobudur - Central
Javan period (A.D. 732 - 938), andesite.

On their symbolic path to
Nirvana, the devotees have been able to admire 432
Buddhas in high relief in the niches above the gallery
passages. Each of these has a typical mudra (hand
position). On the eastern side is the bhumisparshamudra,
indicating reasonning; on the south, the waradramudra,
meaning granting wishes. On the west is the dhyanamudra,
indicating meditation, and on the north the abhayamudra,
representing fearlessness. With the 72 stupa Buddhas
on the highest circle, we have a total of 504 statues of
Buddha on this highest spiritual level.

Aerial
view of Borobudur.

Candi
Prambanan:

The
new temple site of Prambanan was built as a stone symbol of the
victory over the Sailendras. Under the ruler Sri Maharaja Rakai
Pikatan, the site was built with an original total of 232
shrines, ans was completed around 915 A.D. under King Daksha. A
devastating earthquake destroyed the whole complex in 1549.

Today we can once again admire
the eight main temples, for they have been reconstructed.
The three largest are arranged in a square courtyard on a
north-south axis. They symbolize the Trimurti, the hindu
trinity. In the middle, the main temple, 56 meters (184
feet) high, is dedicated to Shiva; next to it, to the
south, is the temple to Brahma and to the north the
temple dedicated to Vishnu, both 37 meters (121 feet)
high. Opposite these three temples are three more
shrines, which contain the mythical animals which the
Trimurti used for mounts: Shiva's bull, called Nandi;
Brahma's gander, Hamsa; and Vishnu's sun-bird, Garuda. At
the northern and southern entrance doorways stand two
identifical buildings which possibly served as places to
keep cult objects. All other 224 shrines lie in ruins
today.

The Prambanan style is
considered to mark the transition from the Central to the
East Javan style.

Candi Prambanan - 9th
century, Hindu, Central Java.

Bali:

At the
beginning of the 16th century, when the Majapahit empire had
moved further east, a period of independant cultural development
began on Bali. Nowhere else on earth are
there as many temples as in Bali. The number is estimated at
around 20 000. There are family temples, temples serving several
families, temples for individual territories, temples for all
bali, and three obligatory temples for each village.

The temple of Besakih, the
"mother of all the temples", lies at the foot
of the highest mountain in Bali, the Gunung Agung. This,
the largest temple site in Bali, in which every village
is represented by sacred building, is an excellent
illustration of the structure of a temple site.
Characteristic of Besakih is the large number of Merus:
wooden constructions with pagodas-like roofs covered in
palm fibers that are piled up on top each other and taper
off in size as they rise. These symbolize the
mythological world mountain, the seat of the gods. The
number of roofs is always an odd number, from three to
eleven. Shiva given eleven roofs, Brahma and Vishnu nine,
and the ancestors are allocated the other numbers. A
wealth of small subsidiary temples adjoins the main site.
the fact that the temple site is divided into three again
symbolizes the Trimutri, the Hindu trinity of Shiva,
Brahma and Vishnu. as the indisputable main divinity,
Shiva especially is honored in the inner sanctum.

A further important temple
connected with the Besakih s the Goa Lawah, situated on
the straits of Badung. Goa means "cave" Lawah
"bat", and thousands of bats, regarded as holy,
nest inside the cave and on its exterior walls. This
"cave of bats" leads deep into the mountain and
is supposed to end at the Gunung Agung; in this way there
is a direct link between this temple and the temple of
Besakih. The snake of the underworld, Basuki, is supposed
to live in the cave, and the first shrine at Besakih is
supposedly dedicated to him; in the inner courtyard a
stone throne is dedicated to him and the mythical snake
Antaboga. Goa Lawah is the underworld counterpart to
Besakih, which is seen as occupying the upper-world.

Goa-Gajah grotto - A.D.
1000 - 1100, Bedulu, Gianyar - Bali.

Pura Ulun Danu Bratan, this
Hindu/Buddhist temple was founded in the 17th century,
and is dedicated to Dewi Danu - the goddess of the
waters. It is the focus of ceremonies and pilgrimages to
ensure the supply of water. It situated on Lake Bratan in
north Bali. It has classical Hindu thatched-roof merus
(multi-roofed shrines) and an adjoining Buddhist stupa.
Before people go into the Hindu-Balinese temple sites,
they pass on the left of the double gate a pagoda in
whose niches sit five meditating Buddhas, a sign of the
adoption of elements of Buddhist belief into the Balinese
form of Hinduism.